Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Good morning on this Christmas Eve Day, the day after, I guess you could call it. Here are a few of my thoughts. They come to me often...I guess that's good. It turns out that the pinstriped Mark Teixeira wanted to become a Yankee the whole time. His agent, Scott Boras(s), made a late night, last minute call to the Yankees' brass to inform them of this and NY responded with their $180 million offer, ten million more than Boston. But you know what? Even if the Sox had upped their $170 million eight year bid by $10 million, Teixeira still would have chosen the evil ones. The deck was stacked, the dealer was in on it and the cards were marked. It's over now. John Henry had this to say about the NY - Boston competition...

"From the moment we arrived in Boston in late 2001, we saw it as a monumental challenge," owner John Henry said in an e-mail to the Associated Press, referencing the competition with the Yankees. "We sought to reduce the financial gap and succeeded to a degree. Now with a new stadium filled with revenue opportunities, they (NYY) have leaped away from us again. So we have to be even more careful in deploying our resources."

Peter here...what did he mean by that? Will the Sox go after the bat they need? No, they are solid at every position, except catcher. Will they sign Varitek? Yes, they almost have to. Will they add another arm to their division best rotation? Derek Lowe would be nice...the young arms would have more time to develop their skills. The bottom line is this...NO, THE SKY HASN'T FALLEN. Have faith. I think they'll sign 'Tek and maybe add an arm. If Mike Lowell comes back hale and hearty, the infield is still one of the best. I don't know who our starting shortstop will be, but it's a sure thing that Lugo will be in the mix. Who knows? He might have a complete health resurgence and be vastly improved at the plate. That would be nice. And Youk and Pedey on the infield's right side are the best in all of baseball. No one will argue that, Teixeira or no Teixeira.

That's it for this Christmas Eve Wednesday. I hope your long holiday weekend will be a happy and safe one with family and friends. Merry Christmas to everyone. If you'd like, please click on the title of this post for more on the deal day that was.

I found it hard to understand how there could be so much desire for one particular player. Now, if through some magic crystal ball, one could look ahead in time, and see Teixeira evolving into a Ted Williams or Joe DiMaggio, that's one thing. However, the guy could have come to Fenway and broke his ankle in the very first game! And then what? $180 million dollar laugh would be on the Red Sox.

Just suppose next season discovers a couple of phenomenal young players from the Boston farm system, players who cost pennies, yet turn out to be spectacular rookies, who take the club to the World Series, and go on to become future super stars. Imagine nurturing our own Teixeiras! Those are the kinds of dreams I harbor.

Well, Peter, I hope your shoulder is back in perfect functioning condition, and that you have a happy, healthy 2009!

Best wishes to you too, Elizabeth. Happy happy holidays. About Tex, he was such a perfect fit...gold glove defense and a powerful switch hitter. But that's all over now. I've "turned the page." Thanks for the comment.

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Honest, caring and fun. I can be somewhat lazy. I have it down to a science. Or I can be as active as the Energizer Bunny on laughing gas. To
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